THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF KALAMAZOO COLLEGE

THEINDEXEstablished in 1877 February 9, 2011 Sixth Week

Meet Matheson

Halfway through the school year Susan Matheson talks about her new position at the Caf.

Western Exclusives

A couple of K students just wanted to go to Zumba! What’s off limits to us at WMU.

Breaking the Bubble

A review of Hunan Gardens: just the place to ring in the year of the rabbit, says Maeve Dixon.

Spring Season Ahead

A peek into what to expect from Kalamazoo’s Softball and Base-ball teams this spring.

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The Light Fine Arts Building was jam-packed Thursday with excited sophomores as they took one of the most important steps of their college careers: the declaration of majors. All of the department stands were bustling with students as they made their final contemplations before settling on the field that they wanted. Overall, there were a wide variety of majors declared.

The social sciences and humanities were a popular choice of the day. Both Louie Miller and Darren Clark have decided to pursue a major in these areas. “I declared a history major because it’s something I’ve always had an interest in, and there have been many history majors in my family as well,” said Miller.

Clark said that he wanted “to get an un-derstanding of the basic tenants of society” and for this reason he has decided to major

in Anthropology and Sociology and will be minoring in History.

The natural science tables were also filled with students signing up for majors. As in previous years, the Biology and Chemistry departments had a steady flow of sophomores declaring majors in these two fields. Student Kiran Vangiparan had no idea he would be majoring in the natural sciences a year ago, when he came to “K” with the intention of studying Psychology, “but after taking one course in Chemistry, I decided I wanted to major in that as well.”

Double majors are a popular option for students who have strong interests in dif-ferent fields. Alaina McConnell, who plans on majoring in Spanish and English along with a minor in Anthropology, said “I’m interested in language, culture, and journalism, so I thought this [combination of majors and minors] would be the best way pursue those interests.”

As Declaration of Major Day wore on, exchanges of kudos could be heard amongst the class of 2013. Finally, when asked in

what field they are majoring, these students no longer have to include the words “un-

By JacoB BerensonStaff Writer

Alexis Wright K’13 grabs a sticker to prove of her declaration of anEnglish major.

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Sophomores Declare Areas of Study—and Eat Cake—Thursday: A Major Day

See DECLARATION Page 3

Students Walk-Out, Push to Re Enter: Policy Reform Protest Steps Forward

Cries of “Let us in!” and “I’m 21!” filled the winter air as the hundred-strong crowd of students that gathered in front of the exit from Monte Carlo surged forward. The crowd was so large that campus security had to close the Stone Room exit and the

last stragglers from Monte Carlo were forced to leave from a different exit.

After the chanting pro-testers were shut out of the Stone Room exit, around fifty students moved to the next nearest exit, reassem-bling outside the door be-tween the cafeteria and the

Stone Room. The protest-ers quieted when Direc-tor of Security Tim Young propped open the door to talk to them.

“I don’t make the rules,” he responded to the pro-testers’ concern that the administration hasn’t been pursuing or allowing stu-

dent input into event regu-lations.

After a short exchange with representatives from the group of protesters, Young returned inside Hicks to find Brian Di-etz, Director of Student Involvement, and Sarah Westfall, Dean of Students.

This protest was the lat-est in a series of public-ity raising events intended to “let the administration know that their policies are unfair,” according to Leeor Schweitzer K’11. Trey The protest was advertised as a Facebook event and began at 12:35 p.m., 25 minutes

before Monte Carlo was scheduled to end.

Despite the earlier chanting and pushing at the doors, the protestors were respectful and spoke their positions politely and calmly when Brian Dietz

By Max JensenContirbutor

See WALK OUT Page 3

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Protesting Student gathered outside of the Stone Room entryway Saturday night prompting statements from Dean of Students Sarah Westfall and Assistant Dean of Students Brian Dietz.

The Index

Executive Editor | Kelsey NuttallLayout Editor | Hannah DalyCopy Editor | Maggie KaneAssistant Copy Editors | Ian Flanagan & Kaitlyn SteffenhagenNews Editor | Patrick GaileyFeatures Editor | Emily GuzmanOpinions Editor | Jordan RickardSports Editor | Jackson VaughnWeb Editors | Matthew Muñoz & Anya KhongthavornpipatMedia Manager | Bridgett CollingMarketing Manager | Brittany WorthingtonStaff Writers | Jacob Berenson, Maggie Kane, Matt Muñoz Jackson Vaughn, Jennifer Wendel, Brittany Worthington

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If you’re interested in submitting to the Index or would like to join our

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ON ThE QUAD2 Wednesday, February 9, 2011

It is the end of a won-derful date with someone that you have had your eye on for a while. They

finally ask you out and things could not have gone better. Before you separate for the evening, you hear them tell you the very thing that you did not want to hear, “I just want to be friends.”

Initially, this may be a blow to one’s esteem. You may begin to wonder, “Did I do something wrong,” “What do you mean friends,” or “Why did you ask me out in the first place?”

That series of questions au-tomatically looks at the thought

of being friends as something negative, when it could actu-ally be the complete opposite.

What do you really know about someone after the first date? You are both working to be on your best behavior, be-ing careful not to present any flaws. How realistic is that?

At best, a person may re-veal a small portion of their true selves to keep the other individual interested. Unfortu-nately, relationships that were initially based on minimal in-formation are not subject to be successful mainly because of an unwillingness to be trans-parent.

Friendships provide us with the opportunity to establish genuine relationships. It is during the process that we be-

gin to appreciate each other for who we are. An identified flaw does not end the relationship, but opens the door for commu-nication.

Is this saying that this pro-cess will make everything

easier? Not at all. However, taking the time to be friends at first may help with prevent-ing some relationships that may not need to take place and could help better establish those that do.

By sheryl KellyContributor

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Just a couple of friends enjoying the fall quarter campus.

Counseling Corner: Why Are We Fearful of Being Friends First?

What I Learned at College:

Sometimes our professors say the silliest things.

Were you paying attention in class?

Send us your professor quotes at index@kzoo.edu!

“Oh what’s his name!. . . he got really fat and bought a vineyard.”

—A prof who is alway willing to help with memory devices.

“Whole Foods is a nice place to shop. . . the lighting and the sound and the hairy people that work there.”

— A prof that is friendly with the hairy people.

“I’m not saying Starbucks is good, I’m just saying I think I’d like their oat-meal.”

— A prof who is willing to make sacrifices for a bowl of oatmeal.

declared” or “intended” in their response. With this in mind, the sophomores wore their departmental stickers with pride and triumphantly ate their cake.

NEWs 3Wednesday, February 9, 2011

By Matt MuñozStaff Writer

Complaints about the cafete-ria may be inevitable simply because pleasing everyone is nearly impossible. But trans-parency can often put minds at ease. Sodexo Manager, Susan Matheson, is working to put transparency into the Caf food we eat so frequently.

“We can’t pool eggs”, Matheson said.

Some Caf goers may wonder why their eggs come from a carton. They are real eggs, but the FDA food Code requires perforce that Sodexo acquire their eggs through a distrib-uter, for Kalamazoo College it’s Gordon’s. One the most fundamental problems of food produced for large masses is, and will continue to be, safety.

“We have to treat every egg like it’s contaminated—like the shell might have salmo-nella”, said Matheson.

Another benefit of this egg-in-a-carton method is that it prevents the eggs from turning green due to the steam pro-duced by cooking pooled eggs (cracking several eggs one by one and cooking them togeth-er). The carton-eggs are pas-teurized and mixed with citrus acid to stabilize the eggs.

While this method of mak-ing breakfast is not ideal for most, until a better idea is formulated for mass produced food it is the safest option available. “We’re in a school environment—safety is our biggest concern,” said Mathe-son.

“You know that company from the Terminator? I feel like Sodexo is going to be that company for us—the one that brings about the fall of human-ity,” joked Woody Tauke K’14 as he ate his breakfast in the Welles Dining Hall on Sunday morning.

The rocky relationship be-tween students and Sodexo, the company that provides food for the campus cafeteria, is one that new General Manager of Dining Services Susan Matheson hopes to fix.

“I’ve heard they feel we’re not easy to work with or too expensive,” Matheson said. “I want to let them know that whatever happened in the past is not in my control, but I’m doing my best to make a connection with the student body and help.”

Matheson, who took control of Dining Services at the beginning of the quarter, says she has been mak-ing an effort to reach out to the student body.

“There’s a lot going on,” said Matheson. “I’ve been busy going to student organization meetings.”

The two main issues that she is focusing on are sustainability and local food. She says she has been working with Rebecca Cummins-Lanter K’13, Sus-tainability Coordinator, to meet these goals.

“What can we do to serve the student body and what’s realistic—we’re just hitting the tip of the ice-berg with that,” said Matheson.

These are not the only changes taking place in the cafeteria. Students identified new cereal dispensers,

new signs and containers for dinner rolls.“Everything is more organized,” said Rachel Ev-

ans K’14.“I think the food has been a little better,” said Ja-

son Nosrati K’13.Not all elements of new management were met

with same enthusiasm, however. Geneva Jones, a Sodexo employee, noted the lack of familiar music playing from the dish-cleaning area. She says that new management has disallowed it.

“They took out the fun of the cafeteria for the kids,” said Jones, as another worker nodded in agree-ment as he passed by.

Lola Gibson-Berg K’14 did not notice the lack of music, but was quick to defend Jones’ position. “The music was awesome,” said Gibson-Berg. “I miss it.”

While Matheson said she wants to do what is “re-alistic,” she expressed an openness to input about shortfalls.

“There’s a perception that we don’t care or we’re not flexible,” said Matheson. “I want to make sure we have a good, working relationship.”

and Dean Westfall emerged from Hicks to speak to them. “We feel that there are bigger things be-hind this than individual actions,” Adam Smith K’11 said to Dean Westfall. “The policy is the cause of the action.”

“We will be reevaluating the policy after Monte Carlo,” she re-sponded.

Dean Westfall finished the con-versation by saying that there was potential for StuComm to be in-

volved in the process of review-ing the event policies and that the review of the policies could poten-tially be finished by Crystal Ball.

After Dean Westfall and Brian Dietz returned to Hicks, the pro-testers dispersed.

Alex Morgan K’11, president of StuComm, said that Dean West-fall’s statement was a change from the discussions that had happened between students and administra-tion so far.

“Until now we thought that the review would be an internal thing,” he said. “It’s heartening to hear

that the Dean is willing to sit down and have a review with us.”

Dean Westfall said that the ad-ministration has been open to stu-dent involvement in event policy review.

“The piece that has been missing has been discussion,” she said of the push for event policy reform. “There was some talk about it in late January and nothing since then.”

Dean Westfall’s said that the ad-ministration’s stance toward the review of event policy was un-changed by the protest.

Continued from page 1 Continued from page 1

DECLARATION: K’13 Class Commits

The salad bar is one of the places that Matheson has aimed to make improvements.

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Halfway Point: Matheson Speaks about Caf

Students Question Eggs in a Carton, Sodexo AnswersBy elaine carlinContributor

Student wonder why cafeteria eggs come from a carton mixture.

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WALK OUT: Policy Review “Unchanged by Protest”

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Sodexo Caterers serve up the

infamous Declara-tion of Major Day

cake.

At Kalamazoo College, many stu-dents see their professors primar-ily as teachers who act as another great resource the college offers

on the path towards graduation. But while many professors at K have come to

a small liberal arts college because they want to mold young minds, they also have a more per-sonal duty that does not involve teaching class-es or grading papers. In many cases professors are constantly working on their next publication and often their students are not aware of this.

Jason Yost, a visiting assistant professor of English, has just submitted an article to the Publication of the Modern Language Associa-tion, a very prestigious journal within the field of literature.

Yost, whose article is entitled “Dialectical Poetics,” described his work as “contrasting the aesthetics of allegorical literature to the aesthet-ics of parables.” He said one of the main points his article makes is the idea that “allegories are narrative puzzles, essentially making the reader have a sense of accomplishment upon solving these puzzles, while parables are also puzzles that cannot be solved by the reader alone, thus

having the opposite effect [of allegories] on the reader.”

Yost, who has already had three previous articles published, said that he hopes to even-tually publish a book based off of “Dialectical Poetics.”

Dr. Roberto Robles-Valencia, a Spanish pro-fessor, has also recently submitted an article for publication. His article, entitled “Heterotopia as the Space of the Narrated Nation in Martín Santos’ Tiempo de Silencio” analyzes the 1961 novel by Santos.

“[Tiempo de Sliencio] is a famous Span-ish novel that includes the theme of Spanish nationalism,” said Robles-Valencia. “I am discussing how this story utilizes the concept of heterotopia, which deals in the [perceived] reality of space in which [people] occupy and how power is portrayed in this space.”

Dr. Robles-Valencia is submitting this article to the Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies. Like Yost, he hopes to eventually get a book published that will contain similar themes to his article.

Both Professors Yost and Robles-Valencia have demonstrated that although they have al-ready established themselves in their respective fields, their jobs will always consist of expand-ing their own knowledge and expertise.

For many sophomore couples, studying abroad next year means dealing with long distance relation-ships. But for others, like Nick Nutile K’13 and Alaina McConnell K’13, study abroad will be an experience to share together.

Next year Nutile and McConnell will both travel to Ecuador, though they will be participating in different programs.

Nutile and McConnell said that they made their study abroad choices independently of one another. Nutile said that since study abroad is such an integral part of the K program, he had been thinking about where he would like to study since he arrived at Kalamazoo; “before I had a chance to meet anybody, I had made up my mind [about Ecuador],” he said.

Studying in the same country does not mean that Nutile and McConnell do not wish to follow

their own pursuits. “It’s important to be independent

on this sort of thing that’s made to help you figure out who you are,” Mc-Connell said. Both say they are inde-pendent individuals, aware that study abroad is time for personal growth. They want the opportunity to meet new people and try new things, not just hang out with each other for the time away.

This does not mean that they will not be spending any time together while abroad. “It will be nice hav-ing you to travel with,” Nutile said to McConnell, in reference to traveling to parts of South America outside of the program.

FEATUREs Wednesday, February 9, 20114

In the spirit of Asia Fest, Co-President of Asian Student Association (ASA), Hong Nguyen K‘12, shared how her heritage has affected her identity and her life as a student at Kalamazoo College.

Being part the ASA’s growth since she came to K has helped Nguyen feel more connected to home and grateful that she has a support group of other members who care about this aspect of her life.

Hong wants to promote awareness of the many countries in Asia because many people seem to assume the coun-tries are the same, while there are really so many cultures and backgrounds from that part of the world. Her heritage is something she is very proud of, and she wants to help to break the stereotypes that exist in the U.S. through her background and personal experience.

Hong’s lives in Denver, Colorado, but she was born in a refugee camp in Japan after the Vietnam War took an economic toll on the Southern part of the country where her parents were living at the time.

This caused them to search for greater opportunity for

their children outside of Vietnam, and so they embarked on a dangerous boat journey to Japan.

Not wanting to risk the life of their oldest daughter—Hong’s sister—they left her behind with Hong’s grand-parents and reunited with her seven years later. From Ja-

pan, they were transported to the Philippines, and then to Dodge City, Kansas.

The family stayed in Kansas with friends until Hong’s parents found jobs on a beef plantation. There she was re-united with her sister at age seven and her family grew to include three more children. They then moved to Colo-rado.

Throughout Hong’s childhood, her Vietnamese heritage was very prominent and it helped to define her family val-ues.

It was important to Hong’s parents that their children practice the Vietnamese customs even in a different coun-try. Hong grew up learning to speak, read and write the Vietnamese language. She practiced Buddhism and the general mannerisms of the culture.

Hong and her siblings understand that her parents came here for better opportunities, and they are very thankful for that. Their story motivates her and her sisters to do well in school so they feel like their family’s journey was not wasted.

They have been upholding this through achieving suc-cess in their education and by continuing to take advantage of every opportunity their parents have given them.

Published Professors:Yost, Robles-Valencia Work on New ProjectsBy JacoB BerensonStaff Writer

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By charlotte steeleContributor

Affecting Change: Student Profile: Nguyen K’12 Expresses her Cultural Pride

This is something I am very proud of and I want to defy stereotypes as they exist in our culture

Hong Nguyen K’12

Relationships Reach AbroadBy Brittany WorthingtonStaff Writer

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McConnell and Nutile plan to study abroad in Ecuador.

FEATUREsWednesday, February 9, 2011 5

When Brita Bliss K’13 and her r o o m m a t e went to West-

ern Michigan University’s Rec-reational Center to sign up for a fitness class, they were told that only people with close ties to Western could use the athletic fa-cilities. “We just wanted to go to Zumba—a kind of fitness danc-ing,” Bliss said.

Amy Seth, Western’s Director of University Recreation, said the university’s athletic facilities have been closed to K students and Kalamazoo residents since the renovation of its Rec Center in 1994.

The renovation was paid for by student fees and loans from the state of Michigan and, because of the cost of that project, “everyone who uses the building has to have a membership,” which are avail-able only to Western students, faculty, staff, and alumni. K stu-dents therefore do not have ac-cess to fitness classes or intramu-ral sports at Western and cannot use the university’s facilities for working out on their own.

There are two exceptions to these rules, however, said Seth. K students who register for aca-demic classes at Western through interinstitutional registration can buy a membership for athletic facilities and K students who go to the Rec Center with a West-

ern community member can buy guest access for $7 a day plus program fees.

Bliss was disappointed at the lack of accessibility for K stu-dents at Western’s Rec Center. It would be beneficial for K stu-dents to be able to take classes at Western that are not offered at K, according to Bliss.

“I am thoroughly disappointed with K’s weight room; it is seri-ously underequipped,” she said. Bliss also said that she does not think the weight room is a wel-coming place for female students and non-athletes.

Kristen Smith, Director of Athletics, said it was her depart-ment’s “goal to provide adequate facilities for our students…we

would love to have everybody working out in our facilities.”

While K does not offer athletic memberships, access to Ander-son Athletic Center is restricted to members of the K commu-nity, which benefits K students by preventing overcrowding, said Smith. Seth echoed Smith’s reasoning in regards to facility access, saying that Western can barely host all of its own commu-nity members at its Rec Center—which had over 380,000 accesses last year—making it impractical to allow outsiders to buy mem-berships.

Although the idea has never been pursued, there could poten-tially be space in the summer for K community members to use

Western’s facilities, said Seth; she and Smith concurred that the project would be interesting to pursue, but neither college has taken action yet.

A potential point of collabora-tion between the two schools ex-ists in the context of the Angell Field renovations as well, said Smith. If the project is carried out, K’s athletic fields will be closed for renovation for a year.

The college has been in com-munication with Western, the Kalamazoo Department of Parks and Recreation and Kalamazoo Central High School about using field space owned by those insti-tutions during renovations, said Smith, although final details have not been cemented.

During their sophomore year at Kalama-zoo College, K Desi leaders Nandita Bhar-gava and Roopa Pandit K’11 noticed that some of the cultural groups at K were in competition with each other for campus resources. Members of K Desi, BSO and LSO wanted to create an event surrounding food, music, fashion and dance that would foster the relationships among minority groups on campus.

This event, La Fiesta Desi Sol, became a reality two years ago and will return to Hicks on Saturday, February 26 for a sec-ond time.

“The event is really about us being able

to share our culture and about people hav-ing fun,” said Bhargava.

LSO, BSO, and K Desi, the event found-ers, created the name La Fiesta Desi Sol to represent each of their groups: “La Fiesta” for LSO, “Desi” for K Desi, and “Sol” for BSO.

BSO President Amber Peden K’11 has been the driving force behind the event, which has grown from three student orga-nizations in 2009 to seven this year: BSO, K Desi, LSO, ASA, Caribbean Society, Kalama-Africa, and the Young Persian So-ciety. Peden, Bhargava and Pandit are also working to expand the event to every floor of Hicks, not just the previous cafeteria lo-cation.

Bhargava and Pandit explained the mo-

tivations behind the creation of La Fiesta Desi Sol; when they came to K as first years, there was no event that brought all of the cultural groups together or showed students the diversity just within their own cultures.

They hope the event will raise awareness of the different cultural organizations on campus, because as Pandit explained, not all students are aware that groups like K Desi and Kalama-Africa exist. She added that the goal has always been to create a space where minority students can find some sort of commonality with one an-other.

“It just further ostracizes kids when there aren’t these cultural groups on campus to provide at least some kind of outlet, a place

where kids can come and talk about the is-sues they face as minorities and also to cel-ebrate the differences and the similarities,” said Bhargava.

Members of BSO, LSO and K Desi de-cided to center the event on food, music, dance and fashion because of their im-portance in cultural rituals. Bhargava ex-pressed her gratitude to the new general manager of Sodexo, Susan Matheson, who has been extremely involved in the event planning; Matheson, along with other stu-dent organization leaders involved, has at-tended meetings and even visited a local farm to purchase goat meat for one group. Each group is responsible for providing Sodexo with a list of recipes that it will prepare for the night.

By ian FlanaganStaff Writer

WMU Athletic Facilities Close Doors on Kalamazoo College Community

K Desi Revives Fiesta Desi Sol Event After a One-Year HiatusBy eMily guzManFeatures Editor

Students get their groove on at the first ever Fiesta Desi Sol event two years ago while onlookers form a circle around them. This year’s event helped raise awareness of the different cultural organizations on campus.

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In all my conversations about event policies, the discussion inevitably turns to Saturday, May 31, 2008. That night is best known to me as my freshman-year Crystal Ball.

Dressed as the most fabulous Princess Peach you’ll ever see, I barely remember leaving my partner’s house for the dance. I can only tell you three things: check-in was minimal, the objective at the door was

to avoid Dean Westfall and the inside of the Anderson Athletic Center was a vir-tual black hole. By the time I sobered up, I learned that not only was an ambulance called to campus that night, but that its medics refused to leave given the situation.

There’s no doubt that this was a turn-ing point for college events. The following year the college implemented its current policies for events like Monte Carlo and Crystal Ball. Zero tolerance for alcohol, searches of all bags and coats and no re-entry became the new norm. Students, my-self included, began to protest. Why imple-ment a standard for 21-year-old students? Why search students as though they’re going through a TSA line at the airport? Why can’t students leave and come back if they forget something at home? Further, by kicking students out of events and sending them back home, how are we helping them if they actually do have a substance abuse problem? These questions began two years ago and they’ve continued ever since.

On Saturday night, when we students walked out of Monte Carlo and denied re-entry, we were promised a review of event policies. While I am told this is standard procedure following a campus event, I am hopeful that Student Commission and the Student Life Advisory Committee will play a more integral role in this review.

As the K community reflects upon these policies, it is important for us to keep in mind the balance between the needs of the student body for mobility, privacy and

respect, and the needs of the college with regard to student health and risk-manage-ment. As we move forward it is important for us to evaluate why the college made the changes it did in 2009 and whether or not those policies are effective or necessary in 2011.

As Student Commission continues to work with members of the campus com-

munity, we will be examining the follow-ing questions:

1) Why were these policies implemented in 2009? What incidents or institutional knowledge prompted the college to move toward a more strict set of event policies?

2) What best practice and/or other data were/was consulted prior to implement-ing these policies? Did the college consult with other institutions or certain studies? If yes, which ones, and are those institutions

or the institutions studied comparable to Kalamazoo? If no, why not?

3) What, if any, student input was con-sulted prior to implementing these poli-cies? If student input was considered, how was that arranged? If not, why not?

4) What do incident reports and/or other data indicate about the effectiveness of these policies? Has the number of sub-stance-related incidents decreased since these policies were implemented in 2009? If yes, could the numbers be attributed to other factors or are more problems pop-ping up in other areas like the residence halls? If no, then are these policies work-ing and should we replace them?

5) Is there room for movement?I do not expect any college policy to be

perfect, nor do I expect any Student Com-mission policy proposal to be perfect. Yet I do expect us—students, staff, faculty, al-ums and administrators—to come together at the end of each battle and navigate our way forward. May 2008 was not the last time an ambulance was called to Kalama-zoo College. There was one at Monte Car-lo on Saturday night. While event policy reform has been the main topic of discus-sion these past few weeks, we cannot un-derestimate the most critical component of this discussion—student health.

I know that Student Commission looks forward to being part of event policy re-form and I hope that all students will keep tabs on the Commission and join this con-versation.

OpINIONs Wednesday, February 9, 20116

I did not intend to fill out the CORE Alcohol and Drug survey, mostly because I thought the large manila envelope in my mailbox signaled something more interest-ing, like study-abroad results, and was too disappointed to actually look at it. Like any sleep deprived college student though, I could not resist the lure of free coffee, so I sat down with my miniature pencil and started bubbling.

Age, gender, GPA… every-thing seemed fairly standard un-til I turned the page. Suddenly I

became uncomfortable with the idea of this survey and slightly demeaned at the intense and in-trusive questioning. Would those administering the survey even be willing to fill one out if they were asked to?

After seeing that the ques-tion on volunteer hours directly followed one asking how many drinks I have a week, I got curi-ous about what kind of informa-tion this survey was providing. I Googled it and found that this is a national survey colleges can buy to not only gather their own in-formation, but to compare them-

selves to other colleges. I understand how important

surveys like this can be. I’ve read countless articles on how col-lege students’ imaginations tend to exaggerate the social lives of their peers; I know college drop-out rates are high and I see why schools want to and should know about their students so they can provide needed services, but I still think it’s necessary to ques-tion the validity and usefulness of this survey.

It is doubtful that a full spec-trum of students will fill out this survey, and even of those who do,

that it will be utterly truthful, and not done just for a chance at win-ning a meal cooked by a personal chef. Taking this survey’s results as a clear indication of reality seems like shaky science to me.

More importantly, what kind of dialogue is this sponsoring on campus about the issues in the survey? An anonymous, rarely-distributed survey seems like a meager attempt at understanding students’ lives, and though the let-ter that came with the survey indi-cated that the information will be used in orientation and education-al programs, where does a junior

who has a serious drug addiction, or a sophomore on his/her way to alcoholism fit in if they don’t at-tend special sessions?

If the school truly wants to bet-ter understand our behaviors, at-titudes, and beliefs, an open and more in-depth dialogue of these important issues needs to take place.

Students should be more in-volved in gathering the informa-tion, maybe even sponsoring a peer-led dialogue about drug and alcohol issues on campus. What-ever it is, hopefully it could still involve a free cup of coffee.

By JenniFer WendelStaff Writer

By alex MorganContributor

CORE Survey Analyzed: Wendel Prefers Coffee to Drug/Alcohol Quiz

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‘I do expect us—students, staff, faculty, alums and administrators —to come together at the end of each battle and navigate our way forward.

Student Commission PresidentAlex Morgan K’11

Event Policy Reform Propels Forward Post-Monte Carlo

ARTs & ENTERTAINmENTWednesday, February 9, 2011 7

Breaking the Bubble: Dixon Explores Hunan Gardens

You may be surprised to hear this, but I’ve never talked to my friends from other colleges about the variety of moon bounces I’ve been on at K Col-lege. This is because after hearing their stories of the live performances at their colleges, I would sound like I was brag-ging about a really awesome elemen-tary school event I went to.

I like ice-cream sandwiches and pseudo-carnival rides as much as the next student, but why did students at Northwestern University get to see Talib Kweli and Passion Pit last year at their A&O Ball last spring while I was scrambling up an inflatable obstacle course?

Perhaps we just don’t have the same budget as a prestigious Big Ten school like Northwestern University? That

didn’t stop nearby Calvin College from bringing Ratatat to their school in 2008.

This all comes back to my big question. What are our student activ-ity fees paying for? This new fee being tacked onto our tuition is $300/year per student. At a school with about 1300 students that’s an extra $390,000 a year being devoted to student activities.

Personally, I’d vote to use a small percentage of these funds to bring live entertainment to campus. Pretty Polly Productions advertises: “With you from start to finish, Pretty Polly Productions can help you every step of the way with planning a concert at your college or university. Whether it be an intimate, acoustic, coffeehouse performance or a large-scale, springfest blow-out” (www.prettypolly.com).

They also list how much it costs to bring different acts to your campus. Girl Talk could perform at K College

for $35,000. This is less than 10 per-cent of the annual student activity fees, and that cost could be offset by selling tickets to K students for the event.

Live music would draw new students to K College. I doubt anyone applies to K because they heard we run a re-ally swell Fall Fest, but a reputation for bringing popular bands to campus could cause a wave of new admission applications.

My tuition has gone up drastically in the last three years and now there is a student activity fee added onto that. What more have I been getting? Has the cost of moon bounces quadrupled since I was a first-year?

Don’t tell us to raise the money if we wants live performances on campus. The student activity fee has already taken more than enough money out of our pockets. Use 10 percent of that—or 20 percent for Snoop Dogg—and get us a student activity that students want.

Ditch Moon Bounces, Up the Concerts, PleaseOpEd

From the outside, Hunan Gardens is relatively unassuming. Located in a strip mall, it’s easy to miss, but the smell of delicious food beckons hungry patrons inside. The environment inside Hunan Gardens is relaxed and inviting. A mixed crowd of families, couples, and friends are spread out in the restaurant’s three different rooms.

Red lanterns and a large “Happy New Year” sign hang from the ceiling while Chinese music plays softly in the back-ground. The restaurant is usually fairly crowded on weekends, so expect about a ten-minute wait.

If you want to see the cooking in ac-tion, grab a seat in the third room, with a view into the kitchen where the cooks toss vegetables and meat in giant steam-ing woks. Once seated, warm up from the cold with the large pot of hot tea waiting at each table while munching on fried wontons with sweet and sour sauce.

Hunan Gardens is an ideal spot for larger groups, as sharing dishes is en-couraged. The extensive menu provides a great way to try a wide variety of dishes

and explore authentic Chinese cuisine. Start off with a warm bowl of wonton soup—pork filled wontons floating in a delicious chicken broth.

If you’re looking for an appetizer to share, try the signature dumplings. Six dumplings, either steamed or fried, arrive with a tangy soy sauce dip. Other appetiz-ers include egg rolls, cold noodles with sesame sauce, and crab Rangoon.

The entree menu offers many standard items such as fried rice and beef and broccoli. If you’re looking for something more adventurous, try the boneless duck, stir fried with broccoli, snow peas, car-rots, mushrooms, and cabbage. I recom-mend the Mongolian beef—with green and white onions are sautéed in brown sauce over crispy fried rice noodles.

For a vegetarian option, try the “triple delight”—broccoli, pea pods, and string beans stir-fried in spicy Szechwan sauce.

Other favorites include chicken with cashews, moo shu pork, and sweet and sour chicken. If you still can’t decide, the friendly servers always have great sug-gestions. Don’t forget to check out the specials on the board near the entrance for a unique dish. The portions are huge,

so plan on a feast of leftovers for a few days after your visit.

For those over 21, Hunan Gardens of-fers a full wine and beer list. For a truly authentic addition to your meal, try a lo-cal Chinese beer like Tsing Tao. If you’re looking for a refreshing drink to enjoy with your meal, try a mango or red bean smoothie.

For a full meal with an appetizer, not

including drinks, expect to spend around twelve dollars per person. Appetizers range from $1.25 to $6.95, while entrees range from $7.75 to $12.95. If you’re looking for even more affordable options, head over for the lunch special, when most dishes are only $5.75. Don’t feel like braving the snowpocalypse? Hunan Gardens delivers in Kalamazoo, and on-line ordering is also available.

By Maeve dixonContributor

Review

By Jordan ricKardOpinions Editor

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A Dumpling and dipping sauce from Hunan Gardens

Info Graphic/Jordan Rickard K’11

spORTsWednesday, February 9, 2011 8

Thursday, February 3Men’s Basketball vs CalvinHornets: 69 Knights: 72

The Hornets led most of the first half, although Calvin tied it up five minutes before the half. The Hornets went on a 12 – 5 run to lead 38 – 31 at half-time. The Hornets maintained their lead until half-way through the second half.

K managed to take the lead once more, but Calvin took it back and kept up the pressure until the end. Joe Prepolec K’12 led the Hornets with 21 points, seven rebounds, and three blocked shots. Eric Fish-man K’13 also had 16 points, with five assists.

Saturday, January 29Men’s Basketball at TrineHornets: 74 Thunder: 75

Despite a record breaking performance, the Hor-nets lost in a gut-wrencher. The Hornets trailed most of the first half, but went on a 15 – 6 run to lead 36 – 32 at halftime. The two teams were back and forth for the remainder of play. K took the lead with 13 seconds left, but ten seconds later, Trine scored to take the lead for the final time.

The Hornets missed the shot at the buzzer. Ryan Clark K’11 joined an elite group, scoring his 1,000th point three minutes into the first half on a three-pointer. Only 19 other Kalamazoo Basketball play-ers have joined this group. He had 22 points in all, while Eric Fishman K’13 and Joe Prepolec K’12 both had 17.

Women’s Basketball at AdrianHornets: 58 Bulldogs: 54

Sports SidelineBy Jackson VaughnSports Editor

The Hornets’ Women’s basketball team trav-eled to Adrian on Saturday on a losing streak, looking for a win. That is exactly what they got, leading by up to nine points during the game.

K was always within one basket of a tie game, with the Bulldogs biggest lead only being three points two minutes into the first half. The Hornets led 24 – 15 before Adrian nearly tied it up. The score at halftime was 31 – 27, with Kalamazoo shooting 46 percent from the field.

The second half, it was another battle with the Bulldogs chipping away at the score until they tied it up at 46 with 7:24 left. Adrian took the lead and took it again with 1:20 left, leading by one. Kalamazoo went on a 7 – 2 run to end the game.

The Hornets limited Adrian to only a 25% shooting, while the Hornets finished the game shooting 37 percent overall. Adrian held the lead in free throws, going 26 for 31, and in rebounds, 44 – 33. However, the Bulldogs had 20 turnovers to K’s 11, which proved to be crucial with Kalamazoo scoring 20 points as a result.

Holly Cooperrider K’14 led the swarm, putting up a ca-reer-high 28 points, shooting 57 percent from the field and

going 11 – 11 on free throws. Michelle Maiuri K’11 had four points, three steals, and ten rebounds. Courtney Ka-plan K’11 also had eight points, while Carly Zeitlin K’12 posted seven.

The game was also Adrian’s Pink Zone Game for Breast Cancer: an effort to raise money and awareness. Adrian held events during the week, such as a “Dining to Donate” at Applebee’s, where a portion of the bill went to charity. During the game there was a halftime shooting contest, a jewelry and baked goods sale, and the recognition of breast cancer survivors who received flowers.

Kalamazoo is in now 3 – 17 (2 – 10 in the MIAA). They play next home against Alma on Wednesday, Jan. 9.

Women’s Basketball Team Sics Bulldogs for Third Win, 3-17 Record By Jackson VaughnSports Editor

Baseball, Softball Teams Prepare for Spring Season

“It’s been a long time building a winning culture here at K,” said Head Coach Matt Rix. Going 14 – 25 last year, the Hornets had many close games. Captain Mike Murray K’12 said, “We tied the third most wins in school history last year, so if you go up from that, you are doing something good.”

Coach Rix wants consistency this year. The baseball team beat the league champs Adrian and also the sec-ond place Hope. “I’m really anticipating us taking a gigantic step forward. The next step is just getting con-sistent and having our best game every single game.”

The Baseball team heads down to Winter Haven, Florida March 17 for spring training, with their first out-of-conference game on March 17.

“We are focusing on winning,” said second-year Coach Brian Dewitt. After a first season with none, Coach De-Witt has had his players put in some elbow grease in the off-season, and worked hard in recruiting.

He hopes that these newcomers and their increased num-bers will grant a much needed boost to the team. Also, with only one player having graduated, the team is young and, with their few numbers, the returners have plenty of experience. “I expect us to compete this year. I expect us to go into our games expecting to play at a high level, not just hoping. I expect us to win.”

The Softball team heads down to Clermont, Florida March 18, and their out-of-conference season starts March 20.

Photo courtesy of Chris Mc-Guire

Photo courtesy of Dave Oliph-ant K’11

SoftballBaseball

Maureen Newman K’13 throws last season.

Dave Oli-phant K’13 pitches last spring.

By JacKson vaughnSports Editor

On the Glove Side: The entire team contributes on the field. With most of the starters being young last year, mainly sophomores and first years, they have a lot of experience already. “Anybody who is in there can be the star of the game for us,” says Coach Rix.

On the Bat Side: “We have one of the more exciting lineups,” says Coach Rix. The top third of the lineup is the strongest,with Jake Hansen K’12, who broke the school’s single-season hits record, Mike McCann K’12, who does a good job of getting the ball in play, and David Kamerman K’12 who shattered the schools runs and stolen bases record.

On the Mound: David Oliphant K’11. The only senior on the team this year, a captain, and he is the man that the team is going to be relying on this year on the mound. “He’s our guy that we’ve been able to put out there. He’s the guy that gives us a chance to win every game.”

On the Glove Side: Joining the team last year, Lynza Halberstadt K’13 has “really improved since last May,” says Coach DeWitt. “Her footwork is much, much better, her confidence is better, she’s getting to the balls that last year she wasn’t. “ She is most likely going to be playing at first base.

On the Bat Side: After an off-season working on her patience at the plate, Rayanne Burl K’13 is the one to watch at the plate. She was second on the team in hits last year with a batting average of .264.

On the Mound: With a new strategy on the mound, Coach DeWitt is trumping Calee Dieleman K’14 and Rayanne Burl. “Their job is to let the other team put the ball in play… If you hit your corners outside, inside, and make the other team have weak hits, weak groundballs, weak pop-ups, it makes our job on defense so much easier,” says Coach DeWitt.

Up to Bat: The Players to Keep an Eye on This Season